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“Because you have more important things to deal with than your sister and her problems.”
“That’s what an Alpha does is keeps order in the pack. If Nolen were here, you would have told him.” He sighed and dropped his façade as he closed the gap between us.
Glancing up at my brother, I searched his face to try to find the answers to the questions I didn’t want to ask. “Why are people even spreading those rumors? I mean, just because he didn’t find his mate that night doesn’t mean he won’t ever find her. Right?”
Sawyer glanced away and back up the hallway before turning back to me, a solemn expression on his face. His hand ran through his hair as he stared at me. He always did this when he was uncomfortable and it sort of scared me.
“There is a prophecy,” he said.
Chapter Twelve: Threats
I continued to make my weekly visits to see Amora. It started out monthly, but it tore me apart to stay away from her. During the times I visited her monthly, my training would suffer.
So there I was again at the tree line, watching her like a lovesick pup in my wolf form. Today, Amora had the radio on playing some rock music while she and her friends danced around on the patio in the back. I should have told Sawyer and his father that the patrols were not doing their jobs very well since I had been sneaking onto the territory for the past few months.
However, I didn’t because they would realize I had been here to see Amora or someone on the pack lands without following the proper protocol.
As I sat there, the wind shifted, sending my scent to the group of girls. Being werewolves, even without our wolf form, we can still pick up on familiar scents. Amora’s head jerked to the tree line as she searched with her eyes to define who lurked there. Her reaction made my heart jump into my throat; I hoped it meant that she missed me as much as I missed her.
Crouching in the lilies, I stayed still as her eyes searched for my scent. Eventually, she gave up and returned to the activity she and her friends were now playing. I remained low in the flowers while I surveyed her.
A twig snapped behind me, causing me to twist around, facing Torak. I took off toward our secret meadow, leading him through the underbrush until I got to the clearing. Turning, I confronted him as he came through the tree line.
He shifted, and I followed suit. “Hey, man, why didn’t you tell me you were coming over. We could have talked in the packhouse.”
I fidgeted in place as I sat down on one of the boulders in the meadow. The chill from the rock froze the skin that made contact with it. Sawyer tilted his head and then joined me on the other boulder. Glancing back up at him, I saw the worry in his eyes. “Can I tell you something without you killing me?”
“Of course!”
I ran my hand through my hair as I glanced away from him. This was hard; every time I told him something I had been keeping a secret from him. Which made me feel like an awful friend. “Well, I found my mate the night I shifted.”
Sawyer jumped up from his seat, slapping me on the shoulder. Excitement ran across his face, which lifted my mood a bit, but when I told him who, he would probably tear me apart. “Who! And why the fuck did you not tell me?”
My gaze shifted to worry as I gazed upon my friend, knowing once I told him he would be pissed. For a moment, I thought of telling him some random name, but he was my brother from another mother, and when she turned eighteen, he would figure it out. “Your sister, Amora.”
I scanned his face as it went from excitement to confusion. “What do you mean? My sister? She’s not old enough to be mated. How can you be mated to her?”
“This is the reason I didn’t want to tell you, and the reason I’m here. I have been coming for months, gazing at her and breathing in her scent. I can’t think without coming to see her,” I told him as I ran my hand through my hair. He was angry, but I couldn’t deny that to him. I mean, she was his baby sister, and even though she could very well take care of herself, she didn’t have to because of us.
Sawyer stepped in front of me and held his jaw as he thought. I sat there waiting for the onslaught of fury from my friend, but it didn’t come. “Nolen, how do you know? Do you feel the connection?”
I nodded my head and stood up, turning my back to my friend as he paced. “I don’t think she can sense it. I asked my parents about younger mates, and they told me I shouldn’t sense anything until my mate was of age. But I feel the pull; hell, I felt the pull since I came here. I thought it was a brotherly thing. You know?”
He was quiet for a long time until I turned back to him. He was still staring at me like I had two heads. “So, you’re mated to my sister, and she doesn’t recognize it because she’s not eighteen yet. Why didn’t you tell her? Hell, why didn’t you tell me?”
“What I don’t understand is that my parents say that I shouldn’t be able to sense anything, but there are pack laws that say you can’t tell the younger mate. The reason I didn’t tell you was I thought you might be mad at me and rip me apart.”
Sawyer strolled over to me and placed his hands on my shoulders. “Nolen, what in your fucking mind told you I would be mad at you? I mean, now we will be more than best friends but real brothers! I would much rather she be mated to you than these horndog males in my pack.”
Grinning at him, I knew he meant that. He’d treated me like I was part of the pack as soon as I had stepped foot on his land with my parents. Sawyer’s words put me at ease, knowing that he would accept our bond. “Besides, now I don’t have to worry that her mate is any other wolf around here. I’m not too sure about them or an alpha that would abuse her. You understand what I mean.”
“Yeah. I’m sure the rumors will die once she can sense the bond as well.”
“You’ve heard them as well, huh?”
“Yeah. They think my family is part of this prophecy. Just because Archer didn’t find his mate and everyone thinks I don’t have a mate,” I told him as I walked back over to the boulder I had been sitting on.
“Don’t worry about it, Nolen. Once she turns eighteen, everyone will realize you aren’t. Anyway, you need to be getting back to your pack, and I’m sure your father and mother will be looking for you.” Sawyer chuckled, before a howl sounded throughout the territory. Another followed, bringing Sawyer’s attention to them; the pitch of them didn’t seem urgent, letting me believe that it was an all-clear.
